Death of 'admirable character' Sleeping Indian aged 23

Sleeping Indian, the classy specialist over seven furlongs, died in the Czech Republic on Monday at the age of 23.

The winner of the Group 2 Challenge Stakes at Newmarket in 2006 had been standing at Dr Jan Filla's stud, Halenkovice, near Brno in the south-eastern corner of the country.

Sleeping Indian, a son of Indian Ridge, was bred and owned by George Strawbridge from one of his smart families. His dam, Las Flores, was third in the Italian Oaks and a half-sister to Aidan O'Brien's Group 1 performer Bach.

In the care of John Gosden, Sleeping Indian also won the Hungerford Stakes at Newbury, three more Listed prizes and finished his career with a fourth place in the Breeders' Cup Mile.

Sleeping Indian (white colours, second left) wins the Hungerford Stakes at Newbury in 2005Credit: Edward Whitaker

He stood at first in Britain, at Tweenhills and then Beechwood Grange, before moving to the Czech Republic in 2017. Among his best progeny were the Horris Hill Stakes winner Crazy Horse and Windsor Castle Stakes scorer Hototo, with the odd decent performer appearing later in Eastern Europe.

In May, his best daughter, Harmony, out of Historina, by E Dubai, won a trial for the Slovak edition of the 1,000 Guineas.

Filla explained that he had "succumbed to a severe bout of colic" early on Monday morning. He added: "He was an admirable character and a true member of our family."

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